Method and knitting machine for forming non-run pockets in hosiery



Feb. 6, 1968 w. H. M GINTY ET AL 3,367,143 7 METHOD AND KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY Filed Sept. 14, 1964 8 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS'. WALLACE- H. MQG\NTY, JAMEs W- SOUTHERC:

ancZJAMEE: M. TAYLOR ATTORNEYS Feb. 6, 1968 w. H. M GINTY ET AL 3,361,143

. METHOD AND KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY Filed Sept. 14, 1964 8 Sheets-Sheet t) 1N VENTORS WALLACE H. M -Gmw'v, JAMES W SQUTHERS andJAME-E; M.TAY\ O\2 ATTORNEYS F 6, 96 w. H. M GINTY ET AL 3,367,143

METHOD AND KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY Filed Sept. 14, 1964 8 Sheets-Sheet 3 Q 31 3 INVENTORS:

WALLACE- H. MQGmTY, JAMEs W- Scum-x525 ancz JAMEs MTAYLOR W J ,M#ML

ATTORNEYS Feb. 6, 1968 w. H. M GINTY ET AL 3,367,143

METHOD AND KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY Filed Sept. 14, 1964 8 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTORS. WALLACE H. M26 1 NTY,

JAMES W- 'SQUTHERS and JAM as M. TAYLOR.

ATTORNEY Feb. 6, 1968 W H, McGlNTy ET AL 3,367,143

METHOD AND KNlTTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY Filed Sept 14, 1964 8 Sheets-Sheet 5 5 H M INVENTORS:

. WALLACE QGmTY W JAMEs SOUTHEEE;

andJAMEs M. TAYLOR BYWfleM/%,M%L

ATTORNEYS Feb. 6, 1968 w. H. M GINTY ET AL METHOD AND KNlTTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY 8 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed Sept. 14, 1964 INVENTORS:

7% Q NH GT EW We R C 5 AA W1 R O m n M 5 E M ATTORNEY Feb. 6, 1968 w. H. M GINTY ET AL 3,367,143

METHOD AND KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING NON-RUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY Filed Sept. 14, 1964 8 Sheets-Shee t '7 INVENTORS'. WALLACE- H. MEG l NTY,

JAMES: W. SOuTHE-RS anJJAMEs M.TAYLOI2 ATTORNEYS 8 Sheets-Sheet 8 ATTORNEYS w. H. MCGINTY ET NON-RUN POCKETS IN HOSIERY S R O T Y2: wm m m REM NQ mm mm i I I. m HU I E H w: n I c s a g: m E E O9 m I L MM l. I A A A mm A/ 9 w I I .l l w JJ M A a In! I III VIPL pvw B Feb. 6, 1968 METHOD AND KNITTING MACHINE FOR FORMING Filed Sept. 14, 1964 United States Patent 3,367,143 METHOD AND KNITTIYG MACHINE FOR FORM- ING NON-RUN POCKETS IN HQSIERY Wallace H. McGinty, Belmont, James W. Soothers, Mount Holly, and James M. Taylor, Belmont, N.C., assignors,

by mesne assignments, to Hanes Corporation, Winston- Salern, N.C., a corporation of N orth Carolina Filed Sept. 14, 1964, Ser. No. 396,231 12 Claims. (Cl. 66--48) This invention relates generally to a method and knitting machine for forming seamless stockings wherein the foot is provided with one or more fashioned pockets of a non-run fabric. More particularly, the present invention is directed to a knitting machine and method for forming a seamless stocking having fashioned heel and/ or toe pockets knit of a non-run fabric of the type disclosed in our copending application Ser. No. 354,998, filed Mar. 26, 1964, now abandoned.

In forming ladies sheer seamless stockings, it is common practice to circularly knit the leg and the instep portion of the foot and to reciprocatorily knit the heel and toe pockets of the foot. It is well known to form the circularly knit leg and instep portions of these stockings of non-run fabric, but such stockings have several deficiencies, one of which is the distinct mesh appearance produced by the non-run fabric to which many women object. Also, the reciprocatorily knit heel and toe pockets of these stockings have heretofore been formed only of plain stitches, and therefore no provision is made for preventing runs in the heel or toe pockets where many originate.

With the foregoing in mind, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide method and apparatus for forming a seamless stocking having at least one reciprocatorily knit fashioned pocket of non-run fabric.

A more specific object of this invention is to provide a knitting machine having auxiliary pattern control means for forming tucks during the reciprocatory knitting of at least one fashioned pocket of a seamless stocking,

It is a further object of the present invention to pro vide auxiliary pattern control means which may be economically applied to existing single-feed circular hosiery knitting machines with a minimum amount of modification to the machine and which permits the formation of non-run fabric in at least one of the fashioned pockets of seamless stockings.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide auxiliary pattern control means of the type described which includes a needle cam means that is operable to raise certain needles to shed level while permitting the remaining needles to remain at tuck level during certain swings of the needle cylinder in one direction, and a jack cam means that is operable to raise certain pattern jacks and the corresponding needles to shed level while permitting the remaining pattern jacks and corresponding needles to remain at tuck level during the remaining swings of the needle cylinder in said one direction.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a pattern control means of the type described which also includes means for moving the reverse stitch cam outwardly away from the needle cylinder to an inactive position during each swing of the needle cylinder in a counterclockwise direction and for moving the reverse stitch cam inwardly to an active position during each swing of the needle cylinder in a clockwise direction, and means for lowering the forward stitch cam to a level below the reverse stitch cam while the needle cylinder is reciprocated so that the needles are drawn down to a lower level during counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder than they are drawn down during clockwise swings.

It is a more specific object of the present invention to 3,3h'Ll43 Fatenteol Feb. 6, I9fi8 provide a pattern control means of the type described which includes first and second needle raising cams positioned in advance of the knitting station and control means for selectively moving the first needle raising cam between active and inactive positions during the knitting of the heel pocket and for selectively moving the second needle raising cam between active and inactive positions during the knitting of the toe pocket, the first and second needle raising cams each being provided with operating linkage, the control means including means operable from the striper drum and associated with the needle raising cam operating linkage for selectively connecting the operating linkage with a reciprocating selector drum racking pawl link to selectively impart w-overnent to said first and second needle raising cams in timed relation to movement of the needle cylinder during certain counterclockwise swings, the first needle raising cam being operable during the knitting of the heel and the second needle raising cam being operable during the knitting of the toe, and a movable jack raising cam operable from the stripper drum for movement into active position in timed relation to movement of the needle cylinder during the remaining counterclockwise swings, the movable jack raising cam being operable during the knitting of both the heel and toe.

Some of the objects of the invention having been stated, other objects will appear as the description proceeds, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary view of the upper portion of one side of a conventional circular hosiery knitting machine with the auxiliary pattern control apparatus of the present invention applied thereto;

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary front elevation of the knitting machine, looking inwardly from the right-hand side of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional plan view taken substantially along the line 33 in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary side view of the machine, looking at the opposite side of the machine from that shown in FIGURE 1 and inwardly from the right-hand side of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary rear elevation of the central portion of the knitting machine, looking substantially along the line S-5 in FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 is an isometric view looking downwardly upon one of the needle raising cams of the auxiliary pattern control apparatus, looking in the direction of the arrow 6 in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 7 is an isometric view looking downwardly on the control linkage for selectively imparting movement to the needle raising cams, looking in the direction of the arrow 7 in FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 8 is an isometric view of the movable pattern jack cam, looking substantially in the direction of the arrow 8 in FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 9 is a sectional plan view taken substantially along the line 99 in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 10 is a somewhat schematic sectional view of the needle cylinder and illustrating the arrangement of the needle butts in the needle cylinder; and

FIGURE 1-1 is a somewhat schematic developed plan view of the cams surrounding the needle cylinder and taken as if looking outwardly from inside of the needle cylinder with the cams in flattened out condition and showing the manner in which the needles and pattern jacks are raised and lowered when the needle cylinder is swinging in a counterclockwise direction.

In the drawings, the auxiliary pattern control apparatus is shown in connection with a Scott & Williams circular hosiery knitting machine of the type shown in the patent to Robert W. Scott, No. 1,282,958, issued Oct. 29, 1918,

Machine Parts Catalogue issued by Scott & Williams, Inc.,

Laconia, New Hampshire, and dated June 1955.

The conventional parts of the knitting machine will first be described and then the modifications required to knit non-run fabric in the heel and/or toe pockets will then be described. The machine has a frame (FIGURE 2) supporting the usual drive mechanism including a main drive shaft 21 having belt driven pulleys 22, 23 and 24 and a crank handle 25 supported on one end. The pulley 22 is an idler pulley, the pulley 23 is a slow speed pulley and the pulley 24 is a high speed drive pulley. A high speed pinion 26 is supported on the main shaft 21 and drivingly engages a high speed gear 27 (FIGURES 2 and 4) which is rotated one time for each four rotations of the main drive shaft 21.

A rotary pinion 30 and a reciprocatory pinion 31 are supported on the main drive shaft 21 and are selectively drivingly connected thereto by a longitudinally shiftable clutch element 32 (FIGURE 2). The clutch element 32 is controlled by a conventional yoke 33 for shifting movement between driving engagement with the rotary pinion 30 and the reciprocatory pinion 31 to selectively impart rotation or reciprocation to the main shaft 21. The left-hand end of the main shaft 21 is provided with a cylinder drive bevel gear 34 and a dial drive bevel gear 35.'The cylinder drive gear 34 extends up into a lower bed plate 36 where it drivingly engages a needle cylinder bevel gear, not shown, supported for rotation in the lower bed plate 36. The right-hand portion of the lower bed plate 36 is suitably secured to the upper left-hand portion of the frame 20 (FIGURE 2). The needle cylinder bevel gear supports a slotted needle cylinder 40 in the usual manner for rotation and reciprocation. The needle cylinder 40 has needles N (FIGURE 11), auxiliary jacks A and pattern jacks I supported for vertical movement in the slots.

The needle cylinder 40 extends upwardly through an upper bed plate 42 (FIGURE 2) which is supported in spaced relationship above the lower bed plate 40 by a pair of standards 43, 44 (FIGURE 3). The needle cylinder 40 extends upwardly beyond the upper bed plate 42 and has a sinker bed 45 suitably supported on its upper end. The sinker bed 45 contains the usual sinkers, not shown, that are supported, for radial movement between the needles. A sinker cap 46 is supported on the sinker bed 45 and contains the usual sinker operating cams, not shown, for advancing and retracting the sinkers between the needles. The needle cylinder 40 may be raised and lowered by a cylinder raising tube 50 (FIGURE 2), the upper end of which extends up into the lower bed plate 36. The lower portion of the tube 50 is supported for vertical movement by conventional means, not shown, to

provide variations in stitch length in the conventional.

manner for fashioning the tubular stocking blank as it is knit on the knitting machine.

A bevel gear 51 (FIGURE 2) meshes with the dial drive bevel gear 35 and is suitably secured on the lower end of a vertical drive shaft 52 which extends upwardly through the lower bed plate 36, the standard 43, the upper bed plate 42 and a support standard 53. The upper end of the verticaldrive shaft 52 has a bevel gear fixed thereto that meshes with a bevel gear drive mechanism supported in a dial drive housing broadly indicated at 55 in FIGURE 2. The drive gears in the housing 55 impart rotation to the conventional dial and transfer points, not shown, that are positioned inside of a latch ring 56. As shown in FIGURE 2, the latch ring 56 is supported above the sinker cap 46 and has a throat opening 57 (FIG- URE 11) in which the usual yarn feeding fingers 58 are supported for movement into and out of position to feed yarn Y to the hooks of the needles as they pass thereby.

As shown in FIGURE 11, the'upper bed plate 42 supports the usual fixed needle cams surrounding the needle cylinder. These cams are suitably secured inside of the upper bed plate 42 and include a left-hand end cam 60, a right-hand end cam 61, a needle raise cam 62 and a ring cam 63. A knittingv station is provided beneath the throat opening 57 in the latch ring 56 and includes the usual left-hand or running stitch cam 64, a right-hand or reverse stitch cam 65, a top center cam 66 and a bottom center cam 67. Suitable landing cams 68 and 69 are positioned beneath the respective stitch cams 64 and 65. Narrowing picks 70 and 71 are associated with the stitch cams 64, 65 for engagement with the leading needle butt of active groups of needles to raise the same to inactive level to pass above the center stitch cam 66, during certain fashioning operations.

The reverse stitch cam 65 is supported on a bracket 73 (FIGURE 9) which is in turn supported for rearward sliding movement on the upper bed plate 42 to at times move the reverse stitch cam outwardly away from the needle cylinder so that it will not engage the butts of the needles, for purposes to be later described. The means for moving the bracket 73 and the reverse stitch cam 65 out of operative position will also be later deof the running stitch cam 64. The running stitch cam 64 is normally urged upwardly by spring means, not shown. The control linkage for operating the lever 74 to raise and lower the running stitch cam 64 will be described later.

Conventional radially movable needle butt engaging cams are also provided in advance of the knitting station and include a make-up divider cam 80, a needle leveling cam 81, a gusset cam 82, and a transfer cam 83. The cams -83 are supported for radial movement in a cam block assembiy 85, shown with the inner portion broken away in FIGURE 9 and supported on the upper bed plate 42. Suitable control crank arms 86 and 87 control the conventional operation of the cams 80-83 during the make-up and transfer operations by means of respective thrust rods 88 and 89, having suitable operating cams on their upper ends.

The lower ends of the thrust rods 88, 89 extend down to and are engaged by suitable cams on a main pattern drum 9!) (FIGURE 1) which is supported for rotation on a shaft 91. The outer end of the shaft 91 is suitably supported in a bracket 92 and the other end is suitably supported in the frame 20. Rotation of the main pattern drum is controlled by means of the conventional pattern chain, not shown, to impart step-by-step movement to the pattern drum 90 in a predetermined sequence and at predetermined times.

A striper drum support shaft 94 (FIGURE 3) is supported at one end in a support bracket 95 which is in turn connected to the frame 20. The opposite end of the shaft 94 is supported in a bracket 96 (FIGURE 1) which is connected at its lower end to the bracket 92. A striper drum 97 is supported for rotation on the shaft 94 and is moved in a step-by-step manner by means of a racking pawl 93 which is raised and lowered into racking engagement with a racking gear 9 on the striper drum 97 (FIG- URE 4). The forward end of the racking pawl 98 is suitably connected to a lever 100 (FIGURE 1) which is provided with a cam engaging roller 100a that normally is urged into resilient engagement with a double-throw operating cam 161 that is fixed 0n the main shaft 21. The raising and lowering of the racking pawl 93 into and out of engagement with the racking gear 99 on the striper drum 97 is controlled by means of a conventional controller arm, not shown, to raise and lower the racking pawl 98 in accordance with a predetermined pattern, by means of suitable cams on the main pattern drum 90.

As shown in FIGURE 3, the striper drum 97 has cam races provided thereon and in which suitable cams are provided to control various operations of the machine. The cams on the striper drum 97 are adapted to engage the lower ends of downwardly depending control levers 103 which are pivotally supported at their upper ends on a shaft 1114 (FIGURE 1). The shaft 104 is suitably supported adjacent opposite ends on the brackets and 96. Only three of the control levers 103 are used in connection with the present invention and they will be specifically described later.

A selector drum is supported for rotation on the lower bed plate 36 and provided with the usual pattern elements which have removable butts thereon. The butts of the pattern elements extend outwardly of the selector drum 110 for engagement with the actuating tail portions 111a of a stack of selector levers 111 (FIGURE 3). The lower end of the selector drum 110 is provided with a racking gear 112 which is adapted to be engaged by a racking pawl 113 (FIGURE 3). A pawl control plate, not shown, is provided for at times moving the racking pawl 113 out of engagement with the racking gear 112 to thereby stop step-by-step rotation of the selector drum 110.

The racking pawl 13 is suitably connected to the forward end of a control link 114, the opposite end of which is connected intermediate the ends of a lever 115 (FIG- URE 3). The inner end of the lever 115 is pivotally supported on the lower bed plate 36 and the outer end is suitably connected to the forward end of a split connector link 116. The connector link 116 is made in tWO pieces so that the effective length of the link 116 may be varied. The rear end of the connector link 116 is suitably connected to the forward end of a racking lever 117. The rear end of the racking lever 17 is pivotally supported as at 126 on the frame 20.

A control shaft 121 (FIGURE 4) is suitably supported for vertical movement in the lever 117 and has a cam engaging roller 122 supported on its lower end. The control shaft 121 and the cam engaging roller 122 are normally urged upwardly to the position shown in FIGURE 4 so that the upper end of the control shaft 121 is in engagement with the forward end of a lever arm 124. The lever arm 124 is pivotally supported intermediate its ends on the racking lever 117 and the rear end is suitably connected to the upper end of a control rod 125.

The lower end of the control rod 125 is suitably connected to pattern means, not shown, for at times moving the forward end of the lever arm 124 downwardly to thereby push the control shaft 121 downwardly a predetermined amount to a position where the cam engaging roller 122 is in alinement for engagement by suitable cams 127 on the high speed gear 27. Each time that the roller 122 is engaged by one of the cams 127, the forward end of the racking lever 117 is moved outwardly of the frame 20 (FIGURE 3) and the links 114, 116 are moved rearwardly to impart a racking motion to the racking pawl 113. The roller 122 is normally moved down into alinement with the cams 127 to rack the selector drum 11% while the needle cylinder is rotating. The control shaft 121 and roller 122 may also be pushed down to a greater extent to be engaged by another cam on the high speed gear 27, for purposes associated With the present invention and which will be later described.

As best shown in FIGURE 3, the selector levers 111 are each provided with pattern jack engaging portions 111!) on one end and control tail portions 1110 which are adapted to be engaged by control plates 130, only one of which is shown in FIGURE 3. The control plates 130 are adapted to at times move selected groups of the selector levers 111 to inoperative position so that their pattern jack engaging portions 111b are moved outwardly away from the needle cylinder and out of engagement with any of the pattern jacks I.

The control plates 130 are secured to control levers 131, 132 and 133 (FIGURE 1) which are pivotally supported intermediate their ends on a post 133a. The forward ends of control links 134, 135 and 136 are connected to the levers 131, 132 and 133 while the rear ends of the control links 134436 are suitably connected to the upper ends of conventional control levers similar to the one illustrated at 140 in FIGURE 1. The lower end of the control lever 140 is adapted to engage the main pattern drum and suitable cams, not shown, for controlling the operation of the control levers 131-133 and to at times move groups of the selector levers 111 into and out of engagement with the pattern elements in the selector drum 110. The portions 111a of the selector levers 111 are normally urged into engagement with the pattern elements in the selector drum by tension springs 142 (FIGURE 3) which are connected at one end to the selector levers 111 and at their other ends to a vertical post 143. A racking handle 144 (FIGURES l-3) is pivotally supported on the lower bed plate 36 and is at times operated to rotate the selector drum 110.

As best shown in FIGURE 11, the jack engaging portions 111b of the selector levers 111 are positioned in advance of a jack raising cam 145 which has an outwardly extending stem portion 146 (FIGURE 8) that is in turn mounted for radial adjustment in the lower bed plate 36. The selector jacks J are of the conventional type and have lower stepped cam engaging butts 147 (FIGURE 12) and a plurality of removable selector butts 148. Certain of the jacks J are also provided with an outwardly extending auxiliary raising butt 150, which is provided for use in connection with the present invention and will be presently described.

In normal operation, the needles N may be raised selectively by means of the selector levers 111 and the jack raising cam 145 while the needle cylinder is rotating in a counterclockwise direction. This pattern selection is sometimes used to provide a pattern of tuck stitches in the welt and/ or shadow welt of the stocking and at other times is used to knit a pattern of tuck stitches in the leg to form a micro-mesh or non-run fabric therein. During conventional operation, the selector jacks J are rocked outwardly at their lower ends in the slots in the needle cylinder 40 in advance of the selector levers 111 so that the stepped butts 147 on their lower ends would normally engage and ride up the jack raising cam 145 to raise the jacks I. Raising the jacks J causes the corresponding auxiliary jacks A and the needles N to be raised to shed level prior to reaching the knitting station so that the needles form plain stitch loops after they pick up the yarn from the yarn feed finger 58 at the throat opening 57. Predetermined needles N may be selected to remain at a low level to form tucks at the main knitting station by rocking the lower ends of the corresponding jacks I back into the slots of the needle cylinder so that the jack raising butt 147 moves inside of the jack raising cam 145 without engaging the same. These jacks J are rocked back inwardly of the needle cylinder by engagement of the butts 148 by the selector levers 111.

The butts 147, 150 of the jacks I that are not raised by the jack cam 145 follow the respective level dash-dot pathways 152, 153 (FIGURE 11) while the butts of the corresponding auxiliary jacks A move along the level dash-dot pathway 154 and the butts of the corresponding needles N move along the level dash-dot pathway 155 while the hooks thereof follow the level dash-dot pathway 156. As the books of these needles N pass the throat opening 57, they are lowered when the butts engage the running stitch cam 64. These needles are lowered to stitch forming level after they have picked up the yarn Y from the yarn feeding finger 58, however, they form tucks since they have not been previously raised to shed level.

The butts 147, 150 of the jacks I that are raised by the cam 145 follow the respective dotted pathways 160v (FIGURE 11) while the butts of the corresponding auxiliary jacks A are raised along the dotted pathway 161 and the butts of the corresponding needles N are raised along the dotted pathway 162 while the hooks of these needles are raised along the dotted pathway 163. These needles are thus raised to shed level so that the stitch loops thereon move below the latches of the needles. These raised needles N then pick up the yarn Y at the throat opening 57 and are then lowered by the center stitch cam 66 and the running stitch cam 64 to form plain stitch loops.

The machine is also provided with the usual radially movable switch cams 165 and 166 (FIGURE 11). The switch cam 165 is moved inwardly at times to raise certain groups of needles N to an inactive level, indicated by the dash-dot pathway 167, so that they pass above the center stitch cam 66 when the needle cylinder is reciprocated. The switch cam 166 is moved inwardly at other times to lower groups of needles from the raised inactive level to the lowered active level occupied by the middle group of needles in FIGURE 11.

The switch cams 165, 166 are mounted for radial movement into and out of operative position in the usual switch cam block 168 (FIGURE 9) which is in turn supported on the upper bed plate 42. Radial movement of the switch cams 165, 166 is controlled by means of a horizontal control arm 170 (FIGURES 2 and 9) which is secured intermediate its ends on the upper end of a vertical control rod 171. As best shown in FIGURE 9, the righthand end of the control arm 170 is adapted to engage suitable control levers to position the radially movable switch cams 165, 166 in the proper position with vertical movement of the control rod 171.

The left-hand end of the control arm 170 is provided with a resiliency supported bunter 173 (FIGURE 2), the upper end of which is adapted to engage the outer end of a control wire 174 that is fixed at its inner end in one end of a widening pick control shaft 175. The widening pick control shaft 175 is supported for limited rotation in a hunter post 176, the lower end of which is supported on the upper bed plate 42. The upper end of the bunter post 176 is adapted to support a forward extension of the latch ring 56 and the rear portion of the latch ring 56 is pivotally supported on the upper end of a latch ring pivot post 176a, only the lower portion of which is shown in FIG- URES l, 4 and 5. The front portion of the sinker cap 46 is provided with lugs in which adjustment screws 177, 178 (FIGURE 2) are supported for alternate engagement with opposite sides of the bunter post 176 when the needle cylinder is reciprocated.

The outer end of a widening pick 1S0 (FIGURES 9 and 11) is pivotally supported in the control shaft 175 and the inner end is positioned closely adjacent the needle cylinder for engagement with the butts of leading inactive needles to lower the same from the inactive to the active level, in a well-known manner.

The parts heretofore described are conventional parts of a Scott & Williams KN knitting machine and it is with this type of knitting machine that the present invention is described and shown in the drawings, however, it is to be understood that the present invention may also be applied to other types of circular hosiery knitting machines.

While the present invention is particularly adapted for knitting non-run fabric in the heel and/or toe pockets of seamless stocking, it may also be used to form other patterns of tuck and plain stitches in the heel and/or toe as well as in other portions of stockings.

In our above-noted copending application, a fashioned pocket is knit of non-run fabric and includes alternating partial courses of tight or small plain stitch loops with intervening partial courses of loose or long alternating plain stitches and tucks. As is well known in this type of nonrun fabric, alternate plain stitch loops of the tight courses substantially straighten out, drawing up the legs of the connected plain stitch loops in the succeeding loose course to form locking stitch loops that prevent runs. In order to knit this type of non-run fabric in the heel/or toe pockets while the needle cylinder is reciprocating, the knitting machine has been provided with auxiliary pattern control means which generally includes: (A) means for lowering the left-hand or running stitch cam during the knitting of the fashioned pocket so that the needles will be lowered to a greater extent with each counterclockwise swing of the needle cylinder than they are lowered with each clockwise swing of the needle cylinder; (B) means for moving the right-hand or reverse stitch cam outwardly away from the needle cylinder to an inoperative position out of engagement with the needle butts during each swing of the needle cylinder in a counterclockwise direction and for moving the reverse stitch cam into operative position to engage the needle butts with each swing of the needle cylinder in a clockwise direction; (C) movable needle raising cam means that is operable to raise alternate needles to shed level while permitting the intervening needles to remain at tuck level during certain of the counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder; (D) movable jack raising cam means that is operable to raise intervening pattern jacks and corresponding needles to shed level while permitting the alternate jacks and corresponding needle to remain at tuck level during other swings of the needle cylinder in a counterclockwise direction; and (E) actuator control means for alternately moving the needle raising cam means and the jack raising cam means to operative position during successive swings of the needle cylinder in a counterclockwise direction.

The means for lowering the left-hand stitchcam 64 includes the lever 74 (FIGURE 9), which is suitably secured to the inner end of a control shaft 132. The control shaft 132 is supported for oscillation intermediate its ends in a latch opener support bracket 183 which is fixed at its lower end on the upper bed plate 42 (FIGURE 1). The outer end of the control shaft 182 has one end of a control lever 134 fixed thereto and its opposite end has one end of a stub shaft 185 fixed therein. The upper end of a control rod 186 is suitably connected to the stub shaft 185 and extends downwardly (FIGURE 1) through a guide plate 187 which is supported on the lower bed plate 36.

The lower end of the, control rod 186 is resiliently coupled to a lower reading end portion 199 by a sleeve 191 which has a compression spring therein. The lower reading end portion 199 is adapted to engage cams 192, only one of which is shown, attached to the outer end of the main pattern drum 90. The reading end portion is supported for vertical movement in the horizontal leg of a guide bracket 193 which is suitably secured to the support bracket 92.

The main pattern drum 90 is moved to the position shown in FIGURE 1 during the knitting of the heel pocket, with the cam 192 in engagement with the reading end portion 190 of the control rod 186. The control rod 186 is thus raised to thereby lower the running stitch cam 64 to a level slightly below the level of the reverse stitch cam 65 so that longer stitch loops are formed when the needle cylinder swings in a counterclockwise direc tion. After completion of the knitting of the fashioned heel pocket, the main pattern drum 90 is rotated so thatv the reading end portion 190 of the control rod 186 moves off of the cam 192 and the stitch cam 64 moves back to its normal knitting position, at the same level as the stitch cam 65.

When the toe pocket is to be knit, the main pattern drum 9%) moves around to position another cam (similar to cam 192) in engagement with the reading end portion 190 and thereby lower the stitch cam 64. In order to limit the downward movement of the running stitch cam 64, the lower end of an adjustment stop screw 195 (FIG- URE 1) is adapted to engage the outer end of the lever 184. The medial portion of the screw 195 is threadably supported in the horizontal leg of a support bracket 196 which also has a vertical leg that is in turn suitably secured to the latch opener bracket 183. Thus, the screw 195' may be adjusted to limit upward movement of the control rod 186 and thereby limit downward movement of the running stitch cam 64.

The means for moving the right-hand or reverse stitch cam 65 outwardly to an inoperative position during counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder and inwardly to an operative position during clockwise swings of the needle cylinder includes the support bracket 73 (FIGURE 9) on which the stitch cam 65 is supported. The front end of a control link 200 is suitably secured to the support bracket 73 and the rear end thereof is connected to the lower end of a T-shaped lever 261 (FIG- URE 4). The inner end of the lever 201 is suitably supported on the latch ring support post 176a and the outer end is suitably connected to the upper end of a thrust rod 202. The lower end of the thrust rod 202 is suitably connected to the forward end of an extension 103a of one of the control levers, indicated at 1031) in FIGURE 3.

The lower free end of the lever 103b is adapted to be engaged by suitable cams 204 which are evenly spaced around the striper drum 97. As has been explained, the striper drum 97 is moved in a step-by-step manner in timed relationship with movement of the needle cylinder so that one of the cams 204 engages the control lever 10312 to raise the thrust rod 202 and thereby move the reverse stitch cam 65 outwardly to inoperative position during each counterclockwise swing of the needle cylinder. The cam 204 then moves out of engagement with the control lever 10311 to thereby lower the thrust rod 202 and move the stitch cam 65 inwardly to the operative position with each swing of the needle cylinder in a clockwise direction.

The movable needle raising cam means includes a special needle raising cam 210 and the leveling or needle raising cam 81, both of which are shown in dotted lines in FIGURE 11. The needle cam 81 is controlled at times by the conventional linkage, and it and the needle cam 210 are also controlled by means of novel linkage, to be presently described, that operates in timed relationship to reciprocation of the needle cylinder during the knitting of the heel and toe pockets of the stocking. During the knitting of the heel pocket, the needle raising cam 210 is moved inwardly to raise to shed level the longer butt needles of the group of active needles during alternate swings of the needle cylinder in a counterclockwise direction. These longer butt needles are raised to shed level by the cam 210 along the dotted pathway 211 so that their hooks are raised along the dotted pathway 212 (FIGURE 11). In order that the needle raising cam 210 can move inwardly a sufficient distance toward the needle cylinder, the upper outside edge of the fill-in cam 62 is cut away, as indicated at 213 in FIGURE 6.

As best shown in FIGURE 6, the needle raising cam 210 is provided with an outwardly extending stem portion 214, which is supported for sliding movement in a cam block 215. The lower end of the cam block 215 is suitably secured to the upper surface of the upper bed plate 42 and spring means, not shown, normally urges the needle raising earn 210 and stem portion 214 outwardly to an inoperative position where the cam 210 will not engage any of the butts of the needles in the cylinder.

An adjustable bunter screw 217 engages the outer end of the stem portion 214 and is supported in the upper end of a lever 218. The medial portion of the lever 218 is pivotally supported on the lower end of a bracket 219 (FIGURE 7) that is in turn secured at its upper end on the upper bed plate 42. The lower end of the lever 218 is at times positioned in a notch 220 at one end of an actuating latch link 221 (FIGURES 3 and 7). The link 221 is pivotally supported at a medial portion on a shoulder screw 222 which penetrates an elongate opening 223 10 in the link 221 so that it may be moved back and forth toward and away from the needle cylinder, by means to be presently described. The shoulder screw 222 is threaded into one end of a support cross-bar 224 that is supported in spaced relation above the frame 20 on the top of a support post 225.

The outer end of the link 221 is provided with a notch 226 (FIGURES 3 and 7) which is at times engaged by an operating pin 227. The lower end of the operating pin 227 is fixed in a plate 228 that is in turn secured to the link 116 of the selector drum racking pawl 113. A tension spring 229 is connected at one end to a spring perch pin 230 that extends downwardly from the outer end portion of the link 221 (FIGURE 7) and the other end of the spring 229 is connected to the link 116. The spring 229 normally pulls the link 221 inwardly toward the needle cylinder so that the outer end of the slot 223 engages the shoulder screw 222. The Spring 229 also tends to pull the outer end of the link 221 in a counterclockwise direction in FIGURE 3 so that the notch 226 would engage the pin 227 if swinging movement of the link 221 was not limited. In the present instance, the notch 226 is held away from the pin 227 by a downwardly extending cam finger 231 (FIGURE 7).

The cam finger 231 is fixed on the front end of a control lever 232 that is also provided with a downwardly extending cam finger 231' (FIGURE 7), the purpose of which will be later described. The medial portion of the lever 232 is pivotally supported on the upper end of a bracket 234 which is secured at its lower end on the frame 20. The rear end of the lever 232 is suitably connected to the upper end of a connector link 235, the lower end of which is connected to one end of a lever 236. The medial portion of the lever 236 is pivotally supported on a I medial portion of the vertical leg of a bracket 237, the

horizontal leg of which is fixed on the frame 20 (FIG- URES 5 and 7). The other end of the lever 236 is connected to the upper end of a link 238 (FIGURE 5) that is in turn connected to the forward end of an extension 1030 of a control lever 103d (FIGURE 3). The lower end of the control lever 103d is adapted to be engaged by spaced apart cams 239 on the striper drum 97.

An adjustable bunter screw 217 engages the outer end of a stem portion 240 (FIGURE 7) that supports the needle cam 81 for movement toward and away from the needle cylinder 40 in the cam block 85. The bunter screw 217' is supported in the upper end of a lever 218' that is pivotally supported intermediate its ends on the lower end of a bracket 219 (FIGURE 5). The bracket 219' is fixed at its upper end on the upper bed plate 42. The lower end of the lever 218' is at times positioned in a notch 220' at one end of an actuating latch link 221' (FIGURES 3 and 7). The link 221' is pivotally supported intermediate its ends on a shoulder screw 222' which penetrates an elongate opening 223 in the link 221' so that it may be moved back and forth toward and away from the needle cylinder, by means to be presently described. The shoulder screw 222 is threaded into the rear end of the cross-bar 224.

The outer end of the link 221 is provided with a notch 226' which is at times engaged by an operating pin 227' (FIGURE 7) that is fixed at its lower end in the link 116. A tension spring 229 is connected at one end to the link 221' and at its other end to the link 116. The spring 229' normally pulls the link 221 inwardly toward the needle cylinder so that the outer end of the slot 223' engages the shoulder screw 222'. The spring 229' also tends to pull the outer end of the link 221' in a clockwise direction in FIGURE 3 sothat the notch 226' would engage the pin 227' if swinging movement of the link 221' was not limited by means of the downwardly extending cam finger 231.

As has been explained, during the knitting of the heel pocket, the needle raising cam 210 is moved inwardly during alternate swings of the needle cylinder in a counterclockwise direction to raise to shed level the longer butt needles of the group of active heel needles along the dotted line pathway 211 in FIGURE 11. On the other hand, during the knitting of the toe pocket the needle raising cam 81 is moved inwardly during alternate swings of the needle cylinder in a counterclockwise direction to raise to shed level the longer butt needles of the group of active toe needles along the dotted line pathway 211' and their hooks along the dotted line pathway 212'. The means for operating the needle raising cam 210 during the knitting of the heel pocket and for operating the needle raising cam 81 during the knitting of the toe pocket includes a control bar 241 (FIGURE 3) that is supported adjacent its forward end in the upper end of a slotted bracket 242 that is fixed at its lower end on the lower bed plate 36. The control bar 241 is supported in the bracket 242 for forward and rearward sliding movement and has a downwardly extending leg 241a. One end of a control wire 243 is fixed on the leg 241a and the other end is bent downwardly at a right angle and adapted to engage the right-hand end portion of the link 221 so that it cannot swing in a clockwise direction in FIGURE 3.

A tension spring 244 is loosely connected between the leg 241a and the left-hand endof the link 221 so that when the control bar 241 is in the forward position shown in FIGURE 3, the spring 229 will swing the link 221 in a counterclockwise direction as soon as the cam finger 231 is raised out of engagement with the link 221.

Then, the notch 226 will move into engagement with the pin 227 and the link 221 will be pulled to the right in FIGURE 3 when the link 116 is moved rcarwardly by movement of the racking crank 117 so that inward movement is imparted to the corresponding needle raising earn 210. With the control bar 241 in the forward position shown in FIGURES 3 and 7, the control wire 243 holds the notch 226' in the link 221 out of engagement with the pin 227 so that motion is not imparted to the link 221' and the corresponding needle cam 81.

The control bar 241 can be moved rearwardly of the position shown in FIGURES 3 and 7 by means of a lever 245 that is suitably connected at one end to the rear end of the control bar 241. The medial portion of the lever 245 is pivotally supported on the forward end of a bracket 246 which is in turn fixed on the vertical leg of the bracket 237 (FIGURE 7). The free end of the lever 245 is shown in engagement with a cam plate 247 that is fixed on one side of a thrust rod 248. The lower end of the thrust rod 248 is adapted to ride on the main pattern drum 90 and to at times be raised by suitable cams, not shown.

In FIGURES 3 and 7, the thrust rod 248 is shown in a raised position with its lower end up on a cam so that the control bar 241 is in a forward position. The control bar 241 remains in a forward position during the knitting of the heel pocket so that the latch link 221 and corresponding needle cam 210 are free to operate with each alternate swing of the needle cylinder in a counterclockwise direction and the latch link 221' and corresponding needle cam 81 do not operate. On the other hand, during the knitting of the toe pocket, the thrust rod 248 is not in engagement with a cam and is in a lowered position so that the control bar 241 moves rearwardly. With the control bar 241 in a rearward position, the tension spring 244 is pulled to prevent counterclockwise movement of the latch link 221 so that the notch 226 cannot engage the operating pin 227. Thus, the latch link 221 and corresponding needle raising cam 210 do not operate during the knitting of the toe. However, rearward movement of the control bar 241 moves the end of the control wire 243 out of engagement with the latch link 221' so that it can swing in a clockwise direction when the control finger 231' is raised and the notch 226' will engage the operating pin 12 227'. Then, when the link 116 is moved rearwardly, the latch link 221' will impart movement to the lever 218' to move the corresponding needle raising or leveling cam 81 inwardly to operative position.

During reciprocation of the needle cylinder, while the heel and toe of the stocking are being knit, the high speed gear 27 (FIGURE 4) rotates one-half of a revolution as the needle cylinder swings in a counterclockwise direction and rotates the remaining one-half revolution as the needle cylinder swings in a clockwise direction. Thus, a cam 251 is provided on one side of the high speed gear 27 and the roller 122 (FIGURE 4) is lowered to a position to be engaged by the cam 251 during the knitting of the heel and toe so that the pawl link 116 (FIGURE 3) is moved rearwardly at the beginning of each swing of the needle cylinder in a counterclockwise direction and then moves back to the forward position shown just prior to the beginning of each swing of the needle cylinder in a clockwise direction.

The movable jack raising cam means is best shown in FIGURES 3 and 8 and includes a cam 252 that is adjustably supported on the upper end of an otf-set support bracket 253. The lower end of the bracket 253 is pivotally supported as at 254 (FIGURE 8) on the stem portion 146 of the conventional jack raising cam 145.

The medial portion of the off-set bracket 253 has the inner end of an outwardly and downwardly extending control rod 255 fixed thereto. The weight of the bracket 253 and the control rod 255 normally swing the cam 252 outwardly away from the needle cylinder 40 to an inoperative position so that it will not engage any of the butts on the jacks J.

Control means is provided to raise the outer end of the control rod 255 and to move the jack raising cam 252 into operative position during intervening swings of the needle cylinder in a counterclockwise direction during the knitting of the heel and toe pockets. This control means includes a tension spring 256 (FIGURE 8) that is connected between the outer end of the control rod 255 and the forward end of a control lever 257. The forward end of the control lever 257 is normally held in a lowered position by a tension spring 258 (FIG- URE 8) that is connected to the control lever 257 and to a spring perch on the lower bed plate 36. A medial portion of the control lever 257 is pivotally supported on the upper end of a bracket 260 (FIGURE 3) that is in turn fixed on the frame 20.

The rear end of the control lever 257 (FIGURE 5) is connected by a link 261 to one end of a lever 262 that is in turn pivotally supported intermediate its ends on the upper end of the bracket 237. The other end of the lever 262 is connected by a link 263 to the forward end of an extension 103e on a control lever 103] (FIGURE 3). The lower end of the control lever 103; is adapted to engage the striper drum 97 and a series of spaced apart cams 264 carried thereon. When one of the cams 264 engages the control lever 103i, the forward end of the control lever 257 will be raised, by means of the linkage just described, so that the tension spring 256 swings the bracket 253 and the cam 252 inwardly to the operative position shown in FIGURE 8.

When the jack raising cam 252 is moved into the operative position shown in dotted lines in FIGURE 11, the jacks I that are provided with the butts 150 are raised. The lower butts 147 of the jacks I are raised along the dotted pathway 269 while the butts 150 are raised along the dotted pathway 270 and the butts of the corresponding auxiliary jacks A are raised along the dotted pathway 271. The butts of the corresponding needles N are raised along the dotted pathway 272 while the hooks of these needles are raised along the dotted pathway 273 and these needles approach the knitting station at shed level. The jacks I which do not have the butts 150 are not raised by the jack raising cam 252 and their lower butts travel the level dash-dot pathway 152. The butts of the corresponding auxiliary jacks A travel the level dash-dot pathway 154 while the butts of the corresponding needles N travel the level dash-dot pathway 155 and the hooks follow the level dash-dot line 156 to pick up the yarn at the yarn feed finger 58 and form tucks as they are lowered by the stitch cam 64.

In order to knit heel and toe pockets of the type of nonrun fabric described in our above-noted copending appli cation, the needles N and the selector jacks I have been arranged in the needle cylinder in groups, as shown schematically in FIGURE 10. In the present instance, the needle cylinder is provided with 400 needles and selector jacks and the heel pocket is knit on the group of needles indicated at H and the toe pocket is knit on the group of needles indicated at T, on the opposite side of the cylinder. The group of heel needles includes 69 medium short needles, indicated at MS and having a butt length of .270 of an inch, and 69 short medium short needles, indicated at SMS and having a butt length of .240 of an inch. As shown, the MS needles are placed in alternate slots of the needle cylinder and the SMS needles are placed in the intervening slots. If desired, some short butt needles can be used in the place of some of the SMS needles to form tucks at the rear of the upper portion of the leg of the stocking.

The selector jacks J beneath the MS needles do not have the butts 150 thereon while the jacks beneath the SMS needles do have butts 150 thereon. Groups I and I each contain 31 medium butt needles, indicated at M and having a butt length of .300 of an inch. The selector jacks beneath the needles in group I and I do not have the butts 150 thereon.

The group of toe needles includes 100 medium long needles, indicated at ML and having a butt length of .338 of an inch, and 100 long needles, indicated at L and having a butt length of .390 of an inch. As shown, the needles ML alternate with the needles L and the selector jacks beneath the needles ML have the butts 150 thereon while the selector jacks beneath the needles L do not.

This arrangement of needles and selector jacks is satisfactory to reciprocatorily knit the type of non-run fabric in which alternate partial courses contain what may be termed a l X l arrangement of tuck and plain stitches and in which the tuck stitches are stepped in a walewise direction during the formation of successive alternate partial courses. However, it is to be understood that this pattern of tucks may be repeated for several partial courses before being stepped and the arrangement of needles and selector jacks may be changed to form other patterns, such as adjacent pairs of tuck and plain stitches.

METHOD OF OPERATION The needle cylinder is continuously rotated in a counterclockwise direction to form the make-up, the turned welt, the shadow welt, and the leg portion of the stocking in a conventional manner. The leg can be plain knit throughout or it may include any desired pattern of plain and tuck stitches. Upon completion of the knitting of the leg, the drive mechanism of the machine switches to impart reciprocation to the needle cylinder 40 to knit the heel pocket. All of the needles except those needles in group H are raised to the high inactive level indicated in dashdot lines at 167 in FIGURE 11 so that they pass above the stitch cams while the group of needles H remains at the lower active level indicated by the dash-dot lines 155.

The main pattern drum 90 is rotated to a position where the cam 192 (FIGURE 1) raises the control rod 186 to thereby lower the running or left-hand stitch cam 64 to a position slightly below the position of the reverse or right-hand stitch cam 65 so that longer stitches are formed when the cylinder swings in a counterclockwise direction. The striper drum 97 is moved in a step-by-step manner by the racking pawl 98 so that one of the cams 204 engages the lower end of the control lever 1031b each time that the needle cylinder begins to swing in a counterclockwise direction so that the reverse stitch cam 65 is backed away from the needle cylinder to the inoperative dotted line position shown in FIGURE 11. The cam 204 moves out of engagement with the lower end of the control lever 1015b at the beginning of each clockwise swing of the needle cylinder so that the reverse stitch cam 65 moves back into operative position to form a partial course of plain stitches in every needle wale as the needles in the active group move from left to right in FIGURE 11 and successively pass over the running stitch cam 64, Where they are raised to shed level, then lowered by the center cam 66 and the reverse cam 65 to form plain stitch loops on every needle.

At the beginning or" the knitting of the heel pocket, the roller 122 (FIGURE 4) is lowered into alinement with the cam 251 so that the racking lever 117 (FIGURE 3) is moved outwardly from the frame 20 each time that the cam 251 engages the roller 122. Thus, the racking pawl link 116 is moved rearwardly at the beginning of each counterclockwise swing of the needle cylinder. However, the cam finger 231 is lifted out of engagement with the latching link 221 only at the beginning of alternate counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder, by means of the cams 239 on the striper drum 97, so that the needle raising cam 210 is moved inwardly to engage the butts of the MS needles in group H and raise the same to shed level along the dotted pathway 210 of FIGURE 11 while the remaining SMS needles follow the level dash-dot line until they engage the running stitch cam 64 so that they form tucks and the MS needles form plain stitches. During the knitting of the heel pocket, the latching lever 221 is not connected to the racking link 116 because it is held out of position to engage the operating pin 227' (FIGURE 3) by the control wire 243 which is carried by the control bar 241.

At the beginning of each intervening counterclockwise swing of the needle cylinder, the cams 264 on the striper drum 97 cause the forward end of the control lever 257 to be raised up (FIGURE 3) to thereby swing the jack raising cam 252 inwardly to operative position to engage and raise the jacks under the needles in group H having the butts 159 thereon. These jack butts are raised along the dotted pathway 270 (FIGURE 11) so that the butts of the corresponding needles are raised to shed level along the dotted pathway 272. During these intervening counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder, the forward end of the cam finger 231 holds the latching link 221 in the position shown in FIGURES 3 and 7 and prevent it from swinging into engagement with the operating pin 227 so that the needle raising cam 210 is not moved into operative position.

During the knitting of the heel pocket, the number of active needles in group H is gradually reduced by means of the narrowing picks 70, 71 and gradually increased by means of the widening pick (FIGURE 11). The alternate MS needles of group H are raised to shed level by the needle raising cam 210 while the intervening SMS needles remain at tuck level during each alternate counterclockwise swing of the needle cylinder. The intervening SMS needles of group H are raised to shed level by means of the jack raising cam 252 and the jacks I having the butts 150 thereon while the alternate MS needles remain at tuck level during each intervening counterclockwise swing of the needle cylinder. Thus, each partial course knit when the needle cylinder swings in a counterclockwise direction includes alternating plain stitches and tucks and the number of needles knitting in succeeding partial courses may be decreased and increased by means of the narrowing and widening picks.

After completion of the knitting of the heel pocket, the roller 122 (FIGURE 4) is raised back to the inoperative position shown and rotation of the striper drum 97 is stopped, the main pattern drum 99 is rotated and the running stitch cam 64 is raised back to its normal level and the drive mechanism of the machine switches to again 15 impart continuous rotation in a counterclockwise direction to the needle cylinder toknit the instep portion of the stocking.

Before the toe portion of the stocking is knit, the clutch element 32 is switched and the needle cylinder is shogged so that the group of toe needles T (FIGURE swings equal distances in each direction past the stitch cams and so that the toe of the stocking will be formed on the group of toe needles T. Since the toe of the stocking is formed on a larger group of needles than the heel pocket, it is necessary that the needles N be raised at a point closer to the stitch cams than the needle raising cam 210.

Therefore, in knittin the toe pocket, the needle raising or leveling cam 81 operates alternately with the jack raising cam 252 during successive counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder, At the beginning of the knitting of the toe pocket, the needles in groups H, I, I are raised to the inactive level while the needles in the group T remain at a lower active level. The main pattern drum 90 is moved and the thrust rod 248 is lowered so that the control rod 241 is moved rearwardly in FIGURE 3 to thereby move the control wire 243 out of engagement with the latching link 221 to free the same for operation while the tension spring 244 holds the latching link 221 in inoperative position.

During the knitting of the toe pocket, the cam finger 231 is raised out of engagement with the latching link 221 at the beginning of each alternate counterclockwise swing of the needle cylinder and is lowered to hold the latching link 221 in inoperative position during each intervening counterclockwise swing of the needle cylinder. Thus, the latching link 221 operates to move the needle raising cam 81 inwardly to engage and raise to shed level the alternate L needles in group T while the intervening ML needles remain at tuck level during each alternate counterclockwise swing of the needle cylinder.

The jack raising cam 252 is moved inwardly to operative position by the cams 239 on the striper drum 97 to raise the jacks and corresponding ML needles while the remaining L needles remain at tuck level during intervening counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder, As "was the case in the knitting of the heel pocket, the narrowing picks 70, 71 and the widening pick 180 operate in -the conventional manner to decrease and increase the number of needles knitting in each partial course to form the desired type of fashioned gussets.

The knitting of the non-run fabric during the formation of the heel and toe pockets can best be summarized by referring to FIGURES 10 and 11. During the knitting of the heel pocket, the MS needles of group H are raised to shed level by means of the needle raising cam 210 during alternate counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder while the SMS needles are raised to shed level by means of the jack raising cam 252 during intervening counterclockwise swings of the, needle cylinder. All active needles knit plain stitch loops during every clockwise swing of the needle cylinder and the stitch loops formed during clockwise swings of the needle cylinder are smaller than the plain stitches and tucks formed during counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder. Then, during the knititing of the toe pocket, the needles L of group T are raised to shed level by the needle raising cam 81 during alternate counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder while the ML needles are raised to shed level by means of the jack raising cam 252 during intervening counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder.

While the present invention has been described in connection with knitting the non-run fabric during the knitting of both the heel and toe pockets, it is to be understood that the invention could be utilized to knit the nonrun fabric in only the heel or toe, if desired.

In the drawings and specification there has been set forth a preferred embodiment of the invention and, although specific terms are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only, and not for purposes 1 6 of limitation, the scope of the invention being defined in the claims.

We claim:

1. In the formation of a seamless stocking on a circular knitting machine having a single knitting station, a slotted needle cylinder, needles carried for vertical movement in the slots of the cylinder, a pattern jack positioned beneath each needle, at least one movable needle raising cam positioned in advance of the knitting station, and drive means for rotating and reciprocating said needle cylinder, a method of knitting at least one pocket of run resistant reciprocatorily knit fabric in the stocking comprising the steps of reciprocating the needle cylinder and knitting successive partial courses on a group of adjacent active needles, one partial course with each swing of the needle cylinder, while (a) raising all needles of the active group to shed level in advance of the knitting station and knitting plain stitch loops in every wale of each of the partial courses formed during each swing of the needle cylinder in one direction, and

(b) moving the needle clearing cam into operative position and thereby raising alternate needles of the active group to shed level in advance of the knitting station during alternate swings of the needle cylinder in the other direction and knitting plain stitch loops thereon while forming tucks on the intervening needles of the active group while (c) raising the pattern jacks beneath the intervening needles of the active group to raise said intervening needles to shed level in advance of the knitting station and knitting plain stitch loops thereon while forming tucks on the alternate needles during intervening swings of the needle cylinder in said other direction.

2. In the formation of a seamless stocking on a circular knitting machine having a single knitting station, a slotted needle cylinder, needles carried for vertical movement in the slots of the cylinder, a pattern jack positioned beneath each needle, first and second radially movable needle raising cams positioned in advance of the knitting station, a movable jack raising cam positioned in advance of the knitting station, and drive means for rotating and reciprocating said needle cylinder, a method of knitting a heel pocket and a toe pocket of non-run fabric in the stocking 0 comprising the steps of (1) forming first narrowed and widened joined together gussets to define the heel pocket by reciprocating the needle cylinder and knitting successive partial courses of varying lengths on a first group of adjacent active needles at one side of the needle cylinder, one partial course with each swing of the needle cylinder, while (a) raising all needles in the first active group to shed level in advance of the knitting station and knitting plain stitch loops in every wale of each of the partial courses formed during each swing of the needle cylinder in a clockwise direction, and

(b) moving the first needle raising cam inwardly during alternate counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder and raising alternate needles of the first active group to shed level in advance of the knitting station and knitting plain stitch loops thereon while forming tucks on the intervening needles of this group while (c) moving the jack raising cam inwardly during intervening counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder and raising the pattern jacks beneath the intervening needles of the first active group to raise said intervening needles to shed level in advance of the knitting station and knitting plain stitch loops thereon While forming tucks on the alternate needles of this group, and thereafter (2) forming second narrowed and widened joined together gussets to define the toe pocket by reciprocating the needle cylinder and knitting successive partial courses of varying lengths on a second group of adjacent active needles at the other side of the needle cylinder, one partial course with each swing of the needle cylinder, while (a) raising all needles of the second group to shed level in advance of the knitting station and knitting plain stitch loops in every wale of each of the partial courses formed during each swing of the needle cylinder in a clockwise direction, and (b) moving the second needle raising cam inwardly during alternate counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder and raising alternate needles of the second group to shed level in advance of the knitting station and knitting plain stitch loops thereon while forming tucks on the intervening needles of this group while (c) moving the jack raising cam inwardly during intervening counterclockwise swings of the needle cylinder and raising the pattern jacks beneath the intervening needles of the second group to raise said intervening needles to shed level in advance of the knitting station and knitting plain stitch loops thereon while forming tucks on the alternate needles of this group.

3. In a circular knitting machine for knitting seamless stockings having at least one fashioned pocket therein, said knitting machine having a needle cylinder supported for rotary and reciprocatory movement, needles disposed for vertical movement in the cylinder, a pattern jack positioned below each of said needles and disposed for vertical movement in said cylinder, 21 knitting station including a running stitch cam and a reverse stitch cam normally positioned to engage and raise said needles to shed level and then lower the same to stitch drawing level to form plain stitch loops on each needle upon movement of said cylinder; the combination therewith of auxiliary pattern control means operable during the reciprocatory knitting of the fashioned pocket in the stocking by a group of adjacent active needles for controlling these needles to form non-run fabric in the pocket, said auxiliary pattern control means comprising (a) means associated with said reverse stitch cam for positioning the same in operative position with each swing of the needle cylinder in one direction to lower all needles of the active group of stitch drawing level to form plain stitch loops thereon in alternate partial courses of said fashioned pocket, and for moving said reverse stitch cam to inoperative position with each swing of the needle cylinder in the other direction,

(b) needle raising cam means movable into operative position with alternate movements of said needle cylinder in said other direction to raise certain of the needles of the active group to shed level while permitting the other needles of said group to remain at tuck level, and

(c) jack raising cam means movable into operative position with intervening movements of said needle cylinder in said other direction to raise the pattern jacks positioned below said other needles to thereby raise said other needles of the active group to shed level while permitting said certain needles to remain at tuck level.

4 In a circular knitting machine according to claim 3 including I (d) means associated with said running stitch cam for lowering the same below the level of said reverse stitch cam during movement of said cylinder to form elongated plain stitch loops and tucks in intervening partial courses of the fashioned pocket.

5. In a circular knitting machine for knitting seamless stockings having fashioned heel and toe pockets therein,

said knitting machine having a needle cylinder supported for rotary and reciprocatory movement, needles disposed for vertical movement in the cylinder and having operating butts thereon, a pattern jack positioned below each of said needles and disposed for vertical movement 1n said cylinder, a knitting station including a running stitch cam and a reverse stitch cam normally positioned to engage and raise said needle butts to shed level and then lower the same to stitch drawing level to form plain stitch loops on'each needle; the combination therewith of auxiliary pattern control means operable during the reciprocatory knitting of the heel and toe pockets by respective first and second groups of adjacent active needles having alternating long and short butts thereon for controlling these groups of active needles to form non-run fabric in the pockets, said auxiliary pattern control means comprising (a) means associated with said reverse stitch cam for positioning the same in operative position with each swing of the needle cylinder in a clockwise direction to lower all needles of the active groups to stitch drawing level to form plain stitch loops thereon in alternate partial courses of the fashioned pockets and for moving the reverse stitch cam to inoperative position with each swing of the needle cylinder in the counterclockwise direction,

(b) needle raising cam means movable into operative position to raise alternate needles of the groups of active needles to shed level while permitting the intervening needles of said groups to remain at tuck level,

(0) jack raising cam means movable into operative position to raise the pattern jacks positioned below said intervening needles to thereby raise said intervening needles to shed level while permitting said alternate needles to remain at tuck level,

((1) control means associated with said needle raising cam means and said jack raising cam means for moving said needle raising cam means to said operative position and said jack raising cam means'to inoperative position during alternate movements of said needle cylinder in said counterclockwise direction and for moving said jack raising cam means to said operative position and said needle raising cam means to inoperative position during intervening movements of said needle cylinder in said counterclockwise direction, and

(e) means associated with said running stitch cam for lowering the same below the level of said reverse stitch cam during movement of said cylinder to form longer plain stitch loops and tucks in intervening partial courses of the fashioned pockets.

6. In a knitting machine according to claim 5 wherein said means (a) includes a striper drum having spaced apart cams thereon, a pawl operable to move said striper drum in a step-by-step manner and in timed relationship to reciprocation of said needle cylinder, and operating linkage engageable by said cams and operatively connected to said reverse stitch cam to move said reverse stitch cam to operative position with each swing of said needle cylinder in said clockwise direction and to move said reverse stitch cam to inoperative position with each swing of said needle cylinder in said counterclockwise direction.

7. In a knitting machine according to claim 5 wherein said control means (d) includes a selector drum, a selector drum racking pawl, a racking pawl link connected at one end to said pawl, reciprocating means connected to the other end of said link for moving the link forwardly and rearwardly one time during each rotation of said needle cylinder to operate said racking pawl, means operatively associated with said reciprocating means for moving said link forwardly during each counterclockwise swing of said needle cylinder and for moving said link rearwardly during each clockwise swing of said needle cylinder, operating linkage operatively connected at one end to said needle raising cam means, and pattern controlled means operatively associated with the other end of said operating linkage for connecting the same to said pawl link during alternate counterclockwise swings of said needle cylinder to move said needle raising cam means to operative position.

8. In a structure according to claim 7 wherein said operating linkage includes a latching link pivotally supported intermediate its ends and being connected at one end to said needle raising cam means and in the other end thereof an upstanding operating pin fixed on a medial portion of said racking pawl link for movement therewith in a predetermined path of travel and engageable with the notch in said latching link to impart longitudinal movement to said latching link, resilient means normally urging said other end of said latching link into the path of travel of saidtoperating pin, and wherein said pattern controlled means includes a cam finger operable during intervening counterclockwise swings of said needle cylinder for movement into engagement with said latching link to move said other end thereof out of the path of travel of said operating pin.

9. In a circular knitting machine for knitting seamless stockings having fashioned heel and toe pockets therein, said knitting machine having a needle cylinder supported for rotary and reciprocatory movement, needles disposed for vertical movement in the cylinder and having operating butts thereon, a pattern jack positioned below each of said needles and disposed for vertical movement in said cylinder, a knitting station including a running stitch cam and a reverse stitch cam normally positioned to engage and raise said needle butts to shed level and then lower the same to stitch drawing level to form plain stitch loops on each needle, a striper drum, a pawl operable to move said striper drum in a step-by-step manner and in timed relationship to movement of said needle cylinder, a selector drum, a selector drum racking pawl, a racking pawl link connected at one end to said racking pawl, reciprocating means connected to the other end of said racking pawl link for moving the same forwardly and rearwardly one time during each rotation of said needle cylinder to operate said racking pawl; the combination therewith of auxiliary pattern control means operable during the reciprocatory knitting of the heel and toe pockets by respective first and second groups of adjacent active needles having alternating long and short butts thereon for controlling these groups of active needles to form non-run fabric in the pockets, said auxiliary pattern control means comprising (a) means associated with said reverse stitch cam for positioning the same in operative position with each swing of the needle cylinder in a clockwisedirection to lower all needles of the active groups to stitch drawing level to form plain loops thereon in alternate partial courses of the fashioned pockets, and for moving the reverse stitch cam to inoperative position with each swing of the needle cylinder in the counterclockwise direction, said means including (1) spaced apart cams on said striper drum, and

(2) operating linkage engageable by said cams and operatively connected to said reverse stitch cam to move said reverse stitch cam to operative position with each swing of said needle cylinder in said clockwise direction and to move said reverse stitch cam to inoperative position with each swing of said needle cylinder in said counterclockwise direction,

(b) at least one needle raising cam movable into operative position to raise alternate needles of the groups of active needles to shed level while permitting the intervening needles of said groups to remain at tuck level.

(c) jack raising cam means movable into operative position to raise the pattern jacks positioned below said intervening needles to thereby raise said intervening needles to shed level while permitting said alternate needles to remain at tuck level,

(d) control means associated with said needle raising cam and said jack raising cam means for moving said needle raising cam to said operative positron and said jack raising cam means to inoperative position during alternate movements of said needle cylinder in said counterclockwise direction and for moving said jack raising cam means to said operative position and said needle raising cam to inoperative position during intervening movements of said needle cylinder in said counterclockwise direction, said control means including (1) means operatively associated with said ricprocating means for moving said racking pawl link forwardly during each counterclockwise swing of said needle cylinder and for moving said r-acking pawl link rearwardly' during each clockwise t swing of said needle cylinder,

(2) operating linkage operatively connected at one end to said needle raising cam, and

(3) pattern controlled means operatively associ- 'ated with the other end of said operating linkage for connecting the same to said racking pawl link during alternate counterclockwise swings of said needle cylinder to move said needle raising cam to operative position,.and

(e) means associated with said running stitch cam for lowering the same below the level of said reverse stitch cam during movement of said cylinder to form longer plain stitch loops and tucks in intervening courses of the fashioned pockets.

10. In a circular knitting machine for knitting seamless stockings having fashioned heel and toe pockets therein, said knitting machine having a needle cylinder supported for rotary and reciprocatory movement, needles disposed for vertical movement in the cylinder and having operating butts thereon, a pattern jack positioned below each of said needles and disposed for vertical movement in said cylinder, a knitting station including a running stitch cam and a reverse stitch cam normally positioned to engage and raise said needle butts to shed level and then lower the same to stitch drawing level to form plain stitch loops on each needle, the fashioned heel pocket being knit on a first group of adjacent active needles having alternating long and short butts and being disposed on one side of the needle cylinder, and the fashioned toe pocket being knit on a second group of adjacent active needles having alternating long and short butts and being disposed on the other side of the needle cylinder; the combination therewith of auxiliary pattern control means operable during the reciprocatory knitting of the heel and toe pockets for controlling the groups of active needles to form non-run fabric in the heel and toe pockets, said auxiliary pattern control means comprising (a) means associated with said reverse stitch cam for positioning the same in operative position with each swing of the needle cylinder in a clockwise direction to lower all needles of the active groups to stitch drawing level to form plain loops thereon in alternate partial courses of the fashioned pockets, and for moving the reverse stitch cam to inoperative position with each swing of the needle cylinder in the counterclockwise direction,

(b) first and second needle raising cams movable into operative position to raise needles of the active groups having the longer butts thereon to shed level while permitting the needles thereof having the shorter butts to remain at tuck level,

(c) jack raising cam means movable into operative position to raise the pattern jacks positioned below the needle of the active groups having the shorter butts to thereby raise these needles to shed level while permitting said needles having the longer butts to remain at tuck level,

(d) control means associated with said needle raising cams and said jack raising cam means and operable during knitting of the heel pocket for moving said first needle raising cam to said operative position and said jack raising cam means to inoperative position in advance of said first group of needles during alternate movements of said needle cylinder in said counterclockwise direction and for moving said jack raising cam means to said operative position and said first needle raising cam to inoperative position in advance of said first group of needles during intervening movements of said needle cylinder in said counterclockwise direction, and operable during knitting of the toe pocket for moving said second needle raising cam to said operative position and said jack raising cam means to inoperative position in advance of said second group of needles during alternate movements of said needle cylinder in said counterclockwise direction and for moving said jack raising cam means to said operative position and said second needle raising cam to inoperative position in advance of said second group of needles during intervening movements of said needle cylinder in said counterclockwise direction, and

(e) means associated with said running stitch cam for lowering the same below the level of said reverse stitch cam during movement of said cylinder to form longer plain stitch loops and tucks in intervening partial courses of the fashioned pockets.

11. In a knitting machine according to claim 10, wherein said control means (d) includes a selector drum, a selector drum racking pawl, a racking pawl link connected at one end to said pawl, reciprocating means connected to the other end of said link for moving the link forwardly and rearwardly one time during each rotation of said needle cylinder to operate said racking pawl, means operatively associated with said reciprocating means for moving said link forwardly during each counterclockwise swing of said needle cylinder and for moving said link rearwardly during each clockwise swing of said needle cylinder, first and second operating linkage operatively connected at one end to said respective first and second needle raising cams, and pattern controlled means operatively associated with the other ends of said first and second operating linkage and operable during knitting of the heel pocket for connecting said other end of said first operating linkage to said pawl link during alternate counterclockwise swings of said needle cylinder to move said first needle raising cam to operative position, and operable during knitting of the toe pocket for connecting said other end of said second operating linkage to said pawl link during alternate counterclockwise swings of said needle cylinder to move said second needle raising cam to operative position.

12. In a structure according to claim 11 wherein said first and second operating linkages include first and second latching links pivotally supported intermediate their ends and being respectively connected at one end to said first and second needle raising cams and having notches in their other ends, first and second upstanding operating pins fixed on a medial portion of said racking pawl link for movement therewith in a predetermined path of travel and respectively engageable with the notches in said other ends of said latching links to impart longitudinal movement to said latching links, resilient means normally urging said other ends and notches therein of said first and second operating pins, and wherein said pattern controlled means includes first and second cam fingers operable during intervening counterclockwise swings of said needle cylinder for movement into engagement with said first and second latching links to move said other ends thereof out of the path of travel of said first and second operating pins.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,847,592 3/1932 Butz 66-48 1,945,227 1/1934 La Montagne et al 66-48 2,727,373 12/1955 Dowell 66-50 XR 2,932,959 4/1960 Getaz 66-48 3,131,556 5/1964 Nebel 66-178 3,157,037 11/1964 Nebel et al 66-178 3,212,300 10/1965 Marlette et al. 66-48 FOREIGN PATENTS 376,426 5/ 1923 Germany. 599,610 3/1948 Great Britain.

WILLIAM CARTER REYNOLDS, Primary Examiner. 

1. IN THE FORMATION OF A SEAMLESS STOCKING ON A CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE HAVING A SINGLE KNITTING STATION, A SLOTTED NEEDLE CYLINDER, NEEDLES CARRIED FOR VERTICAL MOVEMENT IN THE SLOTS OF THE CYLINDER, A PATTERN JACK POSITIONED BENEATH EACH NEEDLE, AT LEAST ONE MOVABLE NEEDLE RAISING CAM POSITIONED IN ADVANCE OF THE KNITTING STATION, AND DRIVE MEANS FOR ROTATING AND RECIPROCATING SAID NEEDLE CYLINDER, A METHOD OF KNITTING AT LEAST ONE POCKET OF RUN RESISTANT RECIPROCATORILY KNIT FABRIC IN THE STOCKING COMPRISING THE STEPS OF RECIPROCATING THE NEEDLE CYLINDER AND KNITTING SUCCESSIVE PARTIAL COURSES ON A GROUP OF ADJACENT ACTIVE NEEDLES, ONE PARTIAL COURSE WITH EACH SWING OF THE NEEDLE CYLINDER, WHILE (A) RAISING ALL NEEDLES OF THE ACTIVE GROUP TO SHED LEVEL IN ADVANCE OF THE KNITTING STATION AND KNITTING PLAIN STITCH LOOPS IN EVERY WALE OF EACH OF THE PARTIAL COURSES FORMED DURING EACH SWING OF THE NEEDLE CYLINDER IN ONE DIRECTION, AND 